The birth of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s son, Archie, marked a prominent departure from royal family traditions, igniting criticism and controversy. On May 6, 2019, Markle gave birth to Prince Archie at the Portland Hospital in Westminster. Unlike other royal births, the couple chose not to pose for the traditional picture on the hospital steps, a decision that was met with disapproval from royal photographer Arthur Edwards.

As per Mirror, Arthur Edwards, who has been photographing the royal family since 1977, expressed his agitation with Markle and Harry’s handling of Archie’s birth. He described the situation as a “disaster,” lamenting the lack of immediate pictures of the newborn. Edwards remarked, “When the baby was born, when Archie was born, that was another, in my view, disaster – I knew we were not going to get a picture of [Archie]. Everybody was hoping we would get pictures. We were led to believe that she had gone into labour at two o’clock when the baby had been born many hours earlier. We were led to believe it was going to be a home birth and it was in a hospital. The whole thing was just stage-managed to suit them.”

In the Netflix docuseries, Markle shared her perspective on why she and Harry chose not to pose for pictures outside the hospital. She revealed, “There was already the pressure of the picture with Archie on the steps. Are they going to do that or are they not? But I had been really worried going into that labour because I am older and I didn’t know if I would have to have a C-section. I had a very long-standing relationship with my doctor and that is who I trusted with my pregnancy. And they said, ‘Right, but she is at Portland Hospital and the steps are at this hospital (the Lindo Wing)’. And I said, ‘OK, we could do a photo call in front of Portland Hospital’ They said it is impossible. We couldn’t barricade the streets off and it would create a threat for the emergency room entrance because that is where you would have to do this picture.”

As per the New York Post, instead, Meghan and Harry opted to have pictures taken at Windsor Castle. Meghan described how the palace eventually agreed to this alternative, although it was clear that the decision had been met with some resistance. 

Edwards also shared, “When William was born, and Harry was born, and George, Charlotte, Louis, we got great pictures outside the hospital. 

William and Catherine especially — they made such an effort to show the whole world their baby.” He shared a personal anecdote and said, “I remember showing Camilla in, I think, Munich the first pictures of Archie that was taken by the press, I showed her on my phone, and that was the first time she saw him. It was difficult times.”

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